A unified consensus statement on medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (MRONJ) has not yet been established among the Asian member countries or regions of the Asian Federation of Osteoporosis Societies (AFOS). This study aimed to develop a consensus on MRONJ in patients with osteoporosis across these countries and regions. In this study, the term “Asia-Pacific” refers specifically to the Asian member countries and regions of AFOS. A structured survey consisting of nine MRONJ-related questions was distributed across 10 countries and regions to assess the level of agreement and summarize regional perspectives. In addition, a manual literature review and voting were conducted to evaluate the current evidence on MRONJ. The key aspects of MRONJ, including definition, staging, diagnosis, pathogenesis, risk factors, management, and prevention, were generally consistent among the AFOS countries and regions. The annual incidence and incidence rate of MRONJ associated with low-dose antiresorptive therapy in patients with osteoporosis ranged from 0.025% to 0.136% and 21 to 283 cases per 100,000 person-years, respectively. However, evidence regarding the benefits of drug discontinuation before dental surgery, such as tooth extraction, remains insufficient. Large-scale, multinational studies across AFOS countries and regions are warranted to determine the incidence of MRONJ better and evaluate the impact of antiresorptive drug discontinuation before dental procedures. These findings may contribute to the devel opment of effective evidence-based strategies for preventing MRONJ in patients with osteoporosis.

Objective: This study aims to review the application of dobutamine stress cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (DSCMR) for patients with anomalous inter-arterial coronary arteries. Materials and Methods: Consecutive adult patients (≥18 years) with anomalous inter-arterial coronary arteries and DSCMR performed in a quaternary referral center from January 2020 to December 2024 were retrospectively reviewed. Examination details, including medication and complications, were reviewed. Radiological findings, such as wall motion abnormality, perfusion defect and late myocardial enhancement were evaluated. Post-examination management and outcomes were assessed. Results: A total of 31 patients (17 females [54.8%]; age 53.6±11.7 years) with anomalous inter-arterial coronary arteries were included. Most patients (n=25, 80.6%) had anomalous right coronary artery. There were significant differences in peak heart rate (p<0.001) and blood pressure (p<0.001) when compared to the baseline. Only one patient (3.2%) experienced minor adverse event with chest pain during the examination. Her cardiac enzymes and electrocardiogram were normal. All other patients (n=30, 96.8%) had no examination-related complications. Left ventricular stroke volume (78.3 [interquartile range, IQR 15.8] mL) and ejection fraction (63.2% [IQR 9.2%]) were normal. No wall motion abnormality, perfusion defect nor late myocardial enhancement were identified. Median follow-up after DSCMR was 21.0 (IQR 28.0) months. One patient underwent reimplantation of right coronary artery due to recurrent syncope. Conservative management was adopted for all other patients (n= 30, 96.8%). Most (n=28, 90.3%) were asymptomatic post-examination. No major adverse cardiovascular events were reported. Conclusion DSCMR can be safely performed for patients with anomalous inter-arterial coronary arteries and can help guide management plan.

Case Report Open Access 15 Primary sternal osteosarcoma is an exceptionally rare entity with a male preponderance. We report a rare case of a 19 -year-old nulliparous female who presented with a two -year history of a progressively enlarging right breast mass. Multimodality imaging —including chest radiography, ultrasound, computed tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a large mass arising from the sternum extending into the right breast and anterior mediastinum. Biopsy confirmed high - grade osteosarcoma, characterised by multinucleated giant cells and stromal cells with mild atypia. Immunohistochemistry was positive for vimentin and negative for CK7. Surgical resection was planned; however, the patient declined treatment. This case highlights the importance of considering rare diagnoses in atypical presentations of breast masses and underscores the value of imaging and histopathological correlation in diagnosis and management

Introduction: The 2021 IDF-DAR risk calculator had been previously evaluated in multiple studies and subsequently widely accepted and applied in clinical practice as a practical standardized tool for patient risk stratification. Recently updated, the 2026 IDF-DAR Risk calculator enables a more individualized, evidence-related evaluation of patientrelated and disease-related risk factors, incorporating modern diabetes technologies, including continuous glucose monitoring (CGM), automated insulin delivery (AID) systems, and advanced insulin formulations to enhance risk stratification. This tool allows medical professionals to tailor Ramadan practices based on overall factors toward promoting safe fasting. Methodology: This prospective multicentre observational study recruited adults with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes attending public hospitals nationwide. People with diabetes (PwD) intending to perform Ramadan fasting were invited to participate and assessed using the 2026 IDF-DAR Risk Calculator in the 6-week pre-Ramadan period between 30th January and 19th March 2026. Results: A total of 458 PwD were evaluated and stratified into low (15.7%), moderate (41%), and high risk (43.3%) categories. Most participants had Type 2 diabetes (83.6%), with 60.3% having a disease duration exceeding 10 years and 43% exhibiting poor glycemic control (hemoglobin A1c >9%). Insulin therapy was used by 76.4% of participants, including two individuals with Type 1 diabetes using AID systems. Most participants reported no recent hypoglycemia (76.4%), 81.0% performed glucose monitoring, and 3.3% used CGM. Severe comorbidities were uncommon, with 1.1% having unstable macrovascular disease and 4.4% advanced chronic kidney disease (estimated glomerular filtration rate <30). Notably, 72.2% received structured Ramadan education. Conclusion Majority of PwD attending tertiary diabetes clinics were in the moderate- to high-risk category and intended to fast despite medical advice against fasting in some cases. Although most participants were on insulin therapy, hypoglycemia was low in the pre-Ramadan period. Integration of modern technologies, advanced insulin therapies, and structured education may support safer fasting practices.
Risk Assessment ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Hospitals ; Fasting

Pinelliae Rhizoma (PR), known as Banxia in Chinese, Hange in Japanese, and Banha in Korean, is a renowned herbal medicine in East Asia derived from the dry tuber of Pinellia ternata (Thunb.) Breit. (PT). It is extensively utilized in dispensing granules, classical prescriptions, and herbal formulas to treat various conditions, including cough, infection, phlegm, nausea, asthma, and inflammation. Despite numerous studies on PR and its classical prescriptions over recent decades, a comprehensive synthesis of available evidence regarding its multifunctional roles and therapeutic potential is lacking. This review aims to address this gap by examining emerging evidence from metabonomics, preclinical studies, and clinical trials, while exploring potential trends and prospects for future research. A systematic literature search was conducted across six electronic databases, including PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, ScienceDirect, Wanfang, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure, to identify relevant articles on PR published until March 2023. PR contains 107 compounds with diverse pharmacological activities, including anti-inflammatory, immune regulatory, anti-viral, anti-cancer, anti-asthma, antitussive and expectorant, antioxidant, anti-obesity, anti-atherosclerosis, anti-microbial, emetic and anti-emetic, anti-convulsant and anti-epileptic, sedative and hypnotic, learning and memory enhancement, and anti-depressant effects. Metabonomic studies suggest that raw PR may exhibit cardiotoxicity and pregnancy toxicity while showing no apparent hepatorenal toxicity. However, limited pharmacokinetic investigations on PR constrain its clinical translation. Furthermore, clinical safety data on PR is scarce, with only four clinical trials assessing its positive effects in pediatric epilepsy, nausea and vomiting, soft tissue injury, and chronic sinus tract. This review aims to enhance understanding of PR and provide valuable information and recommendations for further research and development of herbal medicine.
Humans ; Pinellia/chemistry* ; Animals ; Ethnopharmacology ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/chemistry* ; Phytochemicals/chemistry* ; Rhizome/chemistry*

Objective:To compare the surface electromyography characteristics of essential tremor (ET), Parkinson′s disease (PD) and essential tremor-Parkinson′s disease syndrome (ET-PD).Methods:A total of 74 patients [ET group ( n=23), PD group ( n=30), and ET-PD group ( n=21)] admitted to the Parkinson′s and Movement Disorders Center of the Department of Neurology of Xuanwu Hospital from August 2020 to December 2023 were enrolled, and results of their bilateral upper limbs surface electromyography (sEMG) were collected. sEMG activities were analyzed offline. Power spectral analysis was performed to explore the sEMG activities. One-way analysis of variance and chi-square test were used to compare the differences of electrophysiological parameters. Results:For the ET group characterized by postural tremor, the frequency was (6.06±0.68) Hz, the amplitude was (1 200.91±360.69) μV, the proportion of alternating contractions was 30.4% (7/23), and the proportion of harmonic resonances was 34.8% (8/23). For the PD group characterized by rest tremor, the frequency was (4.81±0.61) Hz, the amplitude was (1 057.40±354.52) μV, the proportion of alternating contractions was 73.3% (22/30), and the proportion of harmonic resonances was 70.0% (21/30). For the ET-PD group in rest and postural state respectively, the frequencies were (5.04±0.44) Hz and (5.80±0.47) Hz, the amplitudes were (1 026.05±191.90) μV and (1 196.67±212.12) μV, the proportions of alternating contractions were 52.4% (11/21) and 38.1% (8/21), and the proportions of harmonic resonances were 52.4% (11/21) and 33.3% (7/21). Analysis of variance revealed that tremor frequencies for the PD group and the ET-PD group in rest state were lower than the ET group and the ET-PD group in postural state ( F=27.439, P<0.001). The proportion of alternating contractions for the PD group was higher than the ET group ( χ 2=9.669, P=0.002) and the ET-PD group in postural state ( χ 2=6.333, P=0.012). The proportion of harmonic resonances for the PD group was higher than the ET group ( χ 2=6.517, P=0.011) and the ET-PD group in postural state ( χ 2=6.708, P=0.010). No statistically significant differences were found for tremor amplitudes among all the groups ( F=2.143, P=0.100). Conclusions:ET is characterized by postural tremors, with a higher frequency and a lower alternating contractions and harmonic resonances. PD is characterized by rest tremors, with a lower frequency and a higher alternating contractions and harmonic resonances. The parameters of ET-PD are between ET and PD, which provide objective evidences for differential diagnosis of tremors.

Objective To clarify the metabolic phenotypic changes in the serum and placenta of pre-eclampsia(PE)patients and their potential impact on fetal serum,and to identify and explore potential predic-tive biomarkers related to PE by using non-targeted metabolomics technology,thereby providing a reference for clinical diagnosis and disease monitoring.Methods Based on non-targeted metabolomics using liquid chro-matography-mass spectrometry(LC-MS),metabolomic analyses were performed on serum,placenta and um-bilical cord blood samples from 6 PE patients(PE group)and 6 healthy pregnant women in the late trimester(control group).Differential endogenous metabolites in each sample were screened using multivariate and uni-variate statistical methods.Metabolic pathways involved in the differential metabolites were enriched using MetaboAnalyst software.Additionally,potential biomarkers for predicting PE were identified based on binary logistic regression models.Results Compared with the control group,significant differences in the metabolic profiles of serum,placenta,and fetal serum were observed in the PE group.In the serum of PE patients,major metabolic abnormalities included α-linolenic acid metabolism,taurine metabolism,glycine,serine and threonine metabolism.In the placenta,abnormalities in linoleic acid metabolism,taurine metabolism,α-linolenic acid me-tabolism,and unsaturated fatty acid biosynthesis were detected.In the fetus of PE patients,metabolic abnor-malities were found in glutamine and glutamate metabolism,α-linolenic acid metabolism,and alanine,aspar-tate,and glutamate metabolism,involving polyunsaturated fatty acids and amino acids.The receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curves of differential metabolites were plotted using binary logistic regression models,and 4 serum metabolites with an area under the curve(AUC)＞0.9 were identified,mainly polyunsaturated fatty acid metabolites.The AUC of α-linolenic acid,a common differential metabolite in all three samples,was 0.806,with a sensitivity of 66.67％and specificity of 100.00％,indicating high diagnostic value.Conclusion The serum,placenta,and fetal serum metabolic profiles of PE patients and healthy pregnant women in the late trimester are significantly different and affect the metabolic phenotypes of offspring,providing insights into the pathogenesis of PE.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.11909/j.issn.1671-5411.2017.08.005.].

INTRODUCTION: Rheumatoid factor (RF) and anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody (ACPA) are used in the diagnosis and prognostication of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We wanted to determine the specific contributions of RF and ACPA to the biological nature of RA and whether they act synergistically. METHODS: We identified 731 patients from our prospective multi-ethnic RA cohort and categorised them into four groups: ACPA-positive, RF-positive, doubly positive and doubly negative. We compared the demographics, Disease Activity Score-28, Health Assessment Questionnaire score, quality of life using Short Form 36 and the use of prednisolone and disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) of these patient groups. RESULTS: Four hundred and ninety-one patients (67.2%) were ACPA+RF+, 54 (7.4%) were ACPA+RF-, 82 (11.2%) were ACPA-RF+ and 104 (14.2%) were ACPA-RF-. Mean disease duration before the study entry was not different in the four groups. Patients with older age of onset were less likely to be positive for RF and ACPA. Fewer ACPA+RF+ patients were in remission compared to those in the other groups ( P < 0.05). Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) was higher at study entry in the ACPA+RF+ group (40.4 mm/h vs. 30.6-30.9 mm/h, P < 0.05). Prednisolone and number of DMARDs used were higher in the ACPA+RF+ group compared to the doubly negative group. There were no differences in the functional status and quality of life. CONCLUSIONS RA patients who were positive for both ACPA and RF had lower remission rate, higher baseline ESR and required more corticosteroid and DMARD treatment compared to those who were singly positive or doubly negative. Being doubly positive confers a worse outcome to RA patients.
Humans ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid/diagnosis* ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Rheumatoid Factor/blood* ; Anti-Citrullinated Protein Antibodies/blood* ; Adult ; Quality of Life ; Prospective Studies ; Antirheumatic Agents/therapeutic use* ; Aged ; Peptides, Cyclic/immunology* ; Prednisolone/therapeutic use* ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Severity of Illness Index ; Prognosis

INTRODUCTION: Cancer patients attending emergency departments (EDs) often present with acute symptoms and are frequently admitted. This study aimed to characterise the profile of oncology patients who were discharged from the ED. METHODS: This was a retrospective audit of patients with cancer-related diagnoses who presented to the ED at the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) over a 6-month period from 1 October 2018 to 31 March 2019 and were directly discharged from the ED. Data was extracted from the hospital's electronic medical record system. RESULTS: Of the 492 participants included in the study, the majority were triaged as Priority 2 (61.4%), while 30.7% were triaged as Priority 3, 6.9% as Priority 1 and 1.0% as Priority 4. There was no statistical difference between the National Early Warning scores across the different triage categories in these patients. The most common complaint was (44.3%), followed by genitourinary symptoms (19.5%) and those related to devices, catheters or stomas (17.3%). More investigations of all types were done for patients being managed in Priority 1 (57.6%) than in the other triage categories (40.1% for Priority 2, 23.2% for Priority 3 and 12.0% for Priority 4). Treatment procedures carried out were mainly symptomatic (analgesics, antiemetics, proton pump inhibitors) for 79.8% of the patients. There were no significant differences in the proportion of patients requiring various treatment modalities among the triage categories. CONCLUSION Selected oncological patients may potentially be managed in an ambulatory setting.
Humans ; Emergency Service, Hospital/statistics & numerical data* ; Retrospective Studies ; Female ; Neoplasms/diagnosis* ; Male ; Singapore ; Patient Discharge/statistics & numerical data* ; Middle Aged ; Aged ; Triage ; Adult ; Emergencies ; Aged, 80 and over